Editing 1579 (section)

=== January&ndash;March ===
* [[January 6]]  &ndash; The [[Union of Arras]] unites the southern [[Spanish Netherlands|Netherlands]] under the [[Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza|Duke of Parma]], governor in the name of king [[Philip II of Spain]].<ref name="Holt2002"/>
* [[January 23]] &ndash; The [[Union of Utrecht]] unites the northern Netherlands in a confederation called the [[Dutch Republic|United Provinces]]. [[William I of Orange]] becomes ''Stadtholder'', and the [[François, Duke of Anjou|Duc d'Anjou]], younger brother of [[Henry III of France]], is invited to become hereditary sovereign.<ref name="Holt2002">{{cite book|author=Mack P. Holt|title=The Duke of Anjou and the Politique Struggle During the Wars of Religion|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mt5sraGYbWcC&pg=PA114|date=2 May 2002|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-89278-0|pages=114|language=en}}</ref>
* [[February 4]] &ndash; The [[Calvinist Republic of Ghent|Ghent Republic]] joins the Union of Utrecht.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Despretz |first1=André |title=De instauratie der Gentse Calvinistische republiek (1577-1579) / |url=https://lib.ugent.be/en/catalog/rug01:000798146 |website=lib.ugent.be |access-date=28 January 2024 |date=1963}}</ref>
* [[February 28]] &ndash; The seizure in September by [[Willem IV van den Bergh]], of the [[Boxmeer Castle]] in September in the Netherlands is condemned by the other Dutch members of the Union of Utrecht.<ref>R.W. Tadama, ''Willem Graaf van den Berg en Zijne Tijdgenooten'' (in Dutch)(Zutphen, 1846) p.29</ref>
* [[March 1]] &ndash; Off of the coast of what is now [[Ecuador]], the English [[galleon]] ''[[Golden Hind]]'', captained by [[Francis Drake]], captures the Spanish freighter ''[[Nuestra Señora de la Concepción]]'' (unofficially called "Cagafuego") and its cargo, including 26 tons of silver and 1,000 pounds of gold.<ref>Arthur Herman, ''To Rule the Waves: How the British Navy Shaped the Modern World'' (Harper Collins, 2004) p.88</ref>
* [[March 2]] &ndash; [[Battle of Borgerhout]] in Brabant (now [[Belgium]]): Spanish troops under the command of the Duke of Parma overwhelm rebels fighting for the Union of Utrecht.<ref>Famiano Strada, ''Segunda decada de las Guerras de Flandes: desde el principio del govierno de Alexandro Farnese'' (1681) p.30</ref>
* [[March 12]] &ndash; The [[Siege of Maastricht (1579)|Siege of Maastricht]], a center of the Dutch resistance to Spanish rule, is started in the Netherlands by Spanish troops under the command of [[Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Limburg |url=https://dutchrevolt.leiden.edu/dutch/geografie/L/Pages/limburg.aspx |website=dutchrevolt.leiden.edu |access-date=28 January 2024}}</ref> The siege will last almost four months before Maastricht falls on July 1.